News & EventsMothers Day Treat your mum this Mothers Day with some of these great gift ideas…Show your appreciation for Mum this Mothers Day by letting her know you care. Take a look around Downtown Tauranga for a fabulous range of gifts to suit her style and taste. We have the Bays best woman wear stores and a range of gift ideas to make your mother feel special. So experience your City Centre today, put yourself in our hands and we guarantee that the Downtown Tauranga stores we will make your shopping experience a pleasurable one, and to top it all off take mum out for lunch on Mothers Day and she can enjoy Harmony A Plenty singing from 12.30 -2pm along The Strand and Mid City Mall. Mothers Day has never been so easy because we’ve got it all.  Special Offers Available in Downtown Tauranga - To win a $3,000 shopping spree – shop Goddards Centre this May (conditions apply so see any of the 20 Goddards Centre boutique stores for details)
- Buy anything from Silky Oak Chocolates or Bouquet Flowers before 8th May and win a boxed bouquet of flowers.
- Mention the Downtown Tauranga Guide at Alimento and go in the draw to win a free lunch for two (drawn 31/5/10)
- Mention the Downtown Tauranga Guide at Bravo and go in the draw to win a free lunch for two (conditions apply drawn 31/5/10)
- Mention the Downtown Tauranga Guide at Repertoire and with any purchase over $50 you can go in the draw to win a free night at Hotel on Devonport (conditions apply drawn 31/5/10)
Jazz Festival's Downtown Tauranga Carnival
A special ingredient in Tauranga's Jazz Festival is the famous Downtown Tauranga Carnival. It is a chance to gather and celebrate a diverse assortment of jazz with stages set up around the City Centre. Experience the fine blend of musical styles on teh Classic Hits and Strand 2 stages on the Strand or the Red Square stage in Mid City Mall. The fourth stage in Aspen Reserve has a special indigenous foucs for your listening pleasure. Free to the public and located amidst dozens of fine bars, cafes and restaurants with the sparkling waters of Tauranga Moana as a backdrop, the Downtown Tauranga Carnival is a popular choice if you want to spend a relaxing day experiencing the harbour and great festical music in amongst the best shopping in the Bay of Plenty. On Saturday starting at 11am join us for the family fun entertainment in Grey Street which will be closed tyo traffic to provide a safe and pedestrian friendly environment for children. Come and play in Downtown Tauranga. The little ones will be netertained by B Looney da Clown and they can listen to the tales that Don teh Puppet Man and his puppet friends have to share. Find Twinkle the magical fairy, Tiny the stilt walker or have your face painted, and who could forget Benny the Easter Bunny who has a special treat for young and old. A big bouncy slide, bouncy castle, merry go round and miniature train rides can all be found in one esy location or for a nostaligic look at yesteryear wander through the display of BMW classic cars while enjoying the soulful sounds of jazz. Great family entertainment combined with live music will have you and your family cocooned in blissful contentment. With the refined charm of the Sebel Trinity Wharf Tauranga Jazz Riverboat and the enchanting beauty of the Jazz Steemtrain of yester year making its way through our amazing city it is hard to imagaine wanting to be anywhere else. So come and join us in Downtown Tauranga for what is to be an awesome couple of Jazztacular entertainment. 
2010 Masport Cup Grand Prix Hydroplane Series - 23rd & 24th JanuaryDowntown Tauranga waterfront area will come alive on the 23rd and 24th January with the roar of the hydroplanes as they race it out. A great success last year, it is gearing up to be even more exciting this year. Racing starts 11am to 3pm and it is free to watch from the shoreline but admission to the pit area will be charged. 
Make it a family fun day. Enjoy the great entertainment on the waterfront and let the friendly cafes, bars and restaurants take care of tantalising your taste buds. Check out the many unique stores scattered through the downtown streets nestled within the beautiful harbour and enjoy the whole experience that is Downtown Tauranga.
For more details on Hydroplane Event or just vist Downtown Tauranga 23rd & 24th January 2010. Copeira & Latino Festival 
The Copoeira & Latino Festival was hosted by Downtown Tauranga in the Edgewater Fan on the Waterfront on Saturday 12th December. It started at 1pm and the energy was overflowing when Capoeira took to the streets accompanied by Tauranga batacada (brazilian drumming), beautiful Samba girls, Salsa dancers and capoeira acrobatics. 
Mid City Mall was alive with dance and music as the festival ended with a parade leading to the mall and as the crowd gathered they put on a spectacular display with plenty of encores entertaining onlookers.  Child Cancer FunrazorOn Saturday 5th December Downtown Tauranga hosted the Child Cancer Funrazor. NZL Group provided Santa and Mrs Claus with a ride into the City Centre and then put some of their trucks on display on the Waterfront. Together with bouncy castles, horse and cart rides and Santa & Mrs Claus handing out lollies and lollipops Downtown Tauranga was a buzz with activity. 
 The Dutch Saint Nicolaas Festival was held in the fan area on the Waterfront with some great entertainment for the children including an inspirational ventriloquist show teaching children about the experiences of Christmas. The story of the Kiwi held children spellbound and was well worth taking the time to soaking up the atmosphere created by this festival. Saint Nicolaas made his appearance much to the joy of all. 
Arts FestivalThe backdrop of a magnificent blue sky and Downtown Tauranga bathed in brilliant sunshine helped to bring Downtown Tauranga alive on the Saturday of Labour Weekend with the Arts Festival Street Performers and the launch of the Downtown Tauranga Car Giveaway. Young and old were captivated with the street performers entertaining displays. The Loons showed how supple the human body could be while wearing stilts, by interacting with the audience while at times riding a bike, walking a dog and many more cheeky antics. 
The Taiko Drummers once again attracted a crowd on The Strand and did not disappoint going by the applause and smiles on the faces of those watching. The Red Queen and The Netball Player amused onlookers as they showed how impassive they could remain as stutues while frivolous antics went on around them. 
Young children were captivated by Adrienne and Creaghie who, dressed from head to toe in red, silently encouraged them to help put together a large red jigsaw puzzle. The fact that the red couple remained mute throughout the day proved very amusing when youngsters got so engrossed in placing thier puzzle pieces that they were totally unaware that they were trying to communicate with them. They drew a good group of onlookers who found the antics very entertaining. 
In amongst all of the celebrations were Kirt with the More FM cruiser and Kirby from Mainstreet Tauranga giving away prizes for the launch of the Downtown Tauranga Car Giveaway. The eleven lucky winners drawn on the Saturday will be added to the daily winners throughout the promotion to be finalists in the draw to win the Suzuki Swfit on display in Mid City Mall (Red Square). For more information and photos of the winners go to the promotions page. 
The festival continues until 1st November and will continue to feature; - Spectacular photographic exhibition project during the festival situated both at the Palace and at Baycourt. This will include a kaleidoscope of images of those who live, work and play in the region
- Pacific Cycstal Palace - the Festival heart. Again we will have the stunning Pacific Crystal Palace down on the Strand which becomes a real focus during the festival. Its open every day for coffee and snacks as well as festival performances. There will be free live performances outside the Palace during Labour Weekend and late night music in the Palace Thursday - Saturday nights from 10.30pm
- Writers and Readers with special $5 entry which will appeal to a wide audience including families
The Mastercard All Blacks Roadshow  Young and not so young rugby fans flocked to The Strand Reclamation on the Waterfront on Sunday 6th September to participate in the roadshow and the weather did not disappoint. With the beautiful Tauranga harbour sparkling in the background kids from all over Tauranga joined in the fun and queued to test their skills against the All Blacks. Richie McCaw and Tanerau Latimer arrived at midday to sign autographs and judging by the continuous line of smiling faces this was a major drawcard. It was a great opportunity to get close to some real sports role models and just for a day be immersed in the hype of All Black rugby.  New Harbour BridgeWith a beautiful blue sky as the backdrop the new harbour bridge definitely had its day in the sun on Sunday. With thousands of people taking the opportunity to walk the new bridge the day could not have been better.  Photo supplied by www.sunlive.co.nz
The bridge was open for predestrians to walk the entire length and back between 10 - 2 on Sunday 6th September. Walkers were urged to make a gold coin donation to Waipuna Hospice as they made the inaugural journey. Waipuna Hospice provided volunteers to help with marshalling, safety instructors and providing information to the public, and they did an awesome job. ![]() Photo supplied by www.sunlive.co.nz
Park and ride buses helped to ferry passengers to and from the bridge helping to alleviate traffic from around the area to make a fun day for young and old.
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